[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 69 (Tuesday, June 7, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 7, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                    THE PASSING OF EZRA TAFT BENSON

  Mr. KEMPTHORNE. Mr. President, this past Memorial Day weekend, Idaho 
and the Nation joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 
in mourning the death of President Ezra Taft Benson.
  For the past 9 years, President Benson has lead the L.D.S. Church as 
prophet, seer, and revelator. During his time as president, church 
membership grew to nearly 9 million members worldwide.
  Idaho is proud to be home to such a great leader. President Benson 
was born in Whitney, ID, on August 4, 1899. His service in the church 
included callings as the president of the Boise stake in 1930, 
president of the Washington, DC stake from 1940 to 1943, president of 
the European mission following the close of World War II, and a member 
of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
  There was a brief break in his church service from 1953 to 1961 when 
Elder Benson took a leave of absence from the Quorum of the Twelve to 
serve as Secretary of Agriculture under President Dwight D. Eisenhower. 
In announcing his selection for Secretary of Agriculture, President 
Eisenhower said he was appointing a farmer to the position, and, 
indeed, Ezra Taft Benson brought his Idaho farmer work ethic to the 
President's Cabinet.
  Ezra Taft Benson has been an inspiration to people inside his church 
and out. From helping rebuild Europe following World War II, to 
encouraging members of his church to strengthen their families and read 
their scriptures, Ezra Taft Benson has touched many lives.
  Mr. President, we are saddened by the death of such a great man, but 
grateful for the life he lived, the good he brought into the world, and 
the way he represented his family, his church and his Nation.

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